Title: A Beautiful Corpse
Author: Christi Daugherty
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: March 12, 2019
#ABeautifulCorpse #Fiction #BookReview #CrimeFiction
My Rating: 🌠🌠🌠🌠
Excerpt from GoodReads:
From Christi Daugherty, author of The Echo Killing, comes another pulse-pounding suspenseful thriller featuring crime reporter Harper McClain.
For a woman, being killed by someone who claims to love her is the most ordinary murder of all.
With its antebellum houses and ancient oak trees draped in a veil of Spanish moss, Savannah’s graceful downtown is famous around the world. When a woman is killed in the heart of that affluent district, the shock is felt throughout the city. But for crime reporter Harper McClain, this story is personal. The corpse has a familiar face.
Only twenty-four years old, Naomi Scott was just getting started. A law student, tending bar to make ends meet, she wanted to change the world. Instead, her life ended in the dead of night at the hands of an unseen gunman. There are no witnesses to the crime. The police have three suspects: Scott’s boyfriend, who has a criminal past he claims he’s put behind him, her boss, who stalked another young bartender two years ago, and the district attorney’s son, who Naomi dated until their relationship ended in acrimony. All three men claim to love her. Could one of them be her killer?
With the whole city demanding answers, Harper unravels a tangled story of obsession and jealousy. But the pressures on her go beyond the murder. The newspaper is facing more layoffs. Her boss fears both their jobs are on the line. And Harper begins to realize that someone is watching her every move. Someone familiar and very dangerous.
Someone who told her to run before it’s too late…
My Review
Another great Harper McClain mystery by Christi Daugherty. A Beautiful Corpse is the second book in the series. Although this could be read as a standalone there are many references to book one as well as an underlying mystery of who killed Harper's mother when she was just twelve years old so I would recommend also reading the first book The Echo Killing.
Harper McClain is a crime reporter for a newspaper in Savannah, Georgia. She is covering the murder of a young law student named Naomi Scott. There are three suspects that stand out but what the police believe and what Harper finds while investigating isn't matching up. Could it be because one of the suspects is the son of a prominent district attorney?
The pace of the mystery in this book seemed a little slower than the first book but overall this is another great read. I read so many police procedurals that reading one from the perspective of an investigative reporter is a welcomed change. I love Harper McClain...she is tough and gritty and a believable character. With this book there are also two mysteries in one. Each of the first two books continue to have the underlying mystery of who killed Harper's mom.
A Beautiful Corpse is another well-written book by this highly talented author. I would recommend this series to those who love crime fiction mysteries. I can't wait for the next book to come out. Thanks so much to the author and Minotaur Books for sending me a copy to review. I’m giving this one 4 stars.
About the Author
As a newspaper reporter, Christi Daugherty covered her first murder at the age of 22. There would be many more over the subsequent years when she worked as a journalist in cities including Savannah, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans. Now a novelist, she lives in the south of England. She is the author of The Echo Killing and A Beautiful Corpse.
